Contrasts - Jam Dahl, Desiree Engel

April 11, 2015Jim Dahl

CONTRASTS an exhibition of new work by two Southern California artists will be presented at 57 UNDERGROUND, a non-profit contemporary art gallery located downstairs at the dA Center for the Arts, 252-D South Main Street, Pomona, from April 2 to April 25, 2015. Desiree Engel will show new ceramic sculptures and Jim Dahl will exhibit paintings. The artists will be present during public receptions onSaturdays, April 11 & 25, from 6-9pm. The receptions are free of charge. Regular gallery hours are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 12-4pm. This is what the artists say about their work:

DESIREE ENGEL In a departure from my previous work which was inspired by natural forms and colors, I have created the current body of work by relying on my intuition, without any preconceived notion of what the piece should look like in its completed form. It was a liberating experience for me to just let my mind calm down and simply follow the clay's demands without imposing my ideas upon it.The result for me is a body of work that reflects freedom and the joy of creation.

JIM DAHL These paintings of children's furniture depict play, and psychology between the chairs. Their postures suggest the purposeful presence of being that children possess. I have often painted chairs. The images represent moments of reflective calm. The furniture invites the viewer to similar psychic experiences. A blue table sometimes joins these antics. The shallow atmospheric space setting reveals subtle communication, contrasted with the brightly colored surfaces. I find painterly intrigue in the range of colors monochromatic plastics present under strong light. Preparing the compositions, I sat on the ground to imitate the height of a child's eye. Yet the works are not an effort to recreate the visual experience of childhood. A painterly drama infers adult recollections of meanings discovered in the arrangements. At the same time, I strive to recall the intensity of early interactions and embed this relationship in the picture.

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